


Ignoring the Signs

by bubblegumkitsch



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, Parking Tickets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-20
Updated: 2013-04-20
Packaged: 2017-12-09 01:05:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/768182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bubblegumkitsch/pseuds/bubblegumkitsch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Louis is a hyper-vigilant parking meter attendant and Niall never pays attention to parking signs. </p><p>aka </p><p>The five times Louis gives Niall a parking ticket.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ignoring the Signs

1\. 

“Break’s over, Zayn!” Niall calls, making his way over to the window Zayn is leaning out of. “Also, I hate to remind you but you know you can’t smoke in here. You shouldn’t be smoking at all during recording now that I mention it.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Zayn sighs, flicking the last of his cigarette down onto the street and shutting the window. “By the way, did you you know someone’s giving you a parking ticket?”

“Wait, seriously?” Niall pushes Zayn out of the way to get a better look out of the window, “Damn!” 

Niall darts out the door, receiving a couple of slaps on the ass and "Go get 'em tiger!"s as he stumbles down the stairs to street level.

"Hey! Hey, you!" He yells down the street to the parking attendant now almost a couple blocks away. The attendant, a tan young man with fringe poking out from under his awful uniform cap, glances back momentarily but picks up his pace when he sees Niall waving his ticket angrily in the air. Niall watches helplessly, though admittedly admiring the view he’s getting of the attendant's rather chiseled backside, as the man hops aboard his moped and speeds down the street. Niall could swear the attendant winks at him as he breezes by, probably off to give more pointless tickets. 

“Oh, come on, man!” Niall shouts again in vain, before Liam pokes his head out the studio door. 

“Tough luck, Nialler. You’ll get him next time,” He offers.

“I was only five minutes late refilling the meter! Who does that?” Niall sighs, examining the bright red letters outlining the exorbitant fee he’s going to have to pay.

“Well, nothing we can do about now, is there? Better hurry up, Zayn and I can only stay for another hour and I was really hoping to finish this track before the end of the day today.”

Niall shrugs in resignation and stuffs the ticket in his back pocket, following Liam back up the stairs. 

“Aren’t you forgetting something?” Liam turns around and asks, nodding to Niall’s car.

“Oh, shit, almost forgot the meter again.” Niall makes it down a couple of steps before stopping again, hands shoved in his completely empty pockets, searching for coins. “You don’t think you could spare some change, could you?”

2.

Niall slurps the last dregs from the bottom of his milkshake before tossing it in a nearby bin. He rounds the corner on the street when he sees it. Standing examining his Range Rover is that same parking attendant from the other day, tapping away on his keypad. 

Niall rushes over just as the ticket is printing. The attendant barely notices Niall as he slips the paper on the corner of the car’s windshield.

“Hey!” Niall huffs, already out of breath because, really, how could he have anticipated having to sprint four blocks after two burgers and a milkshake? “What’s this all about, I thought I could park here?”

The attendant gestures to a sign posted on the edge of the street a few spaces down. “No parking between 4 and 6. It’s stated quite clearly,” He replies, voice dripping with boredom and disdain. 

“No parking between 4 and 6? What kind of rule is that?” Niall asks incredulously 

“Listen, I don’t make the rules, man, I just write the tickets,” The man says, starting to move on to the next car, directly (and, apparently, also illegally) parked in front of Niall’s. 

Niall is close behind, not quite ready to give up that easily. “Look, Louis,” Niall starts, noticing the plastic name tag hanging from the attendant’s polo. “Can I call you Louis?”

“I’d really rather you didn’t,” Louis answers curtly, barely looking up from his keypad as he types in the license plate number. 

“Louis, let me level with you. You probably don’t want to give me this ticket any more than I want to get it. So what say you we just forget this whole thing ever happened?”

Louis stares at Niall blankly for a moment before printing out the next ticket. “Is that the best you’ve got, mate? Find me later when you’ve finally honed your powers of persuasion. ‘Till then, I’ve got work to do.” Louis sticks the ticket on the windshield, turns on his heel and starts down the street.

“Oh, I will. don’t you worry! ” Niall raises his voice as Louis gets further and further down the street, “I’ll find you, I mean! You haven’t heard the last of Niall Horan!”

Niall has never been very good at threats. 

3\. 

“Um, Mr. Horan?” The studio receptionist nervously pokes her head in the door.

“Jade, you know you can call me Niall,” Niall sighs, swiveling around in his chair to face the door.

“Right, Niall, sorry!”

“Don’t worry about it. What is it this time? I told you not to come in during recording unless it was an emergency.”

“Yeah, well, about that, I think the band’s equipment van is about to be towed.”

“What’s happening?” On the other side of the glass in the recording booth Harry removes his headphones to hear what’s going on.

“Nothing to worry about!” Niall says through the intercom, “Just sit tight, I’ll be back in a minute!”

Niall dashes out the door, making it outside just in time to see Louis, yet again, tapping away on that pad of his.

“Woah, woah, woah, what’s this about?” Niall reaches out towards Louis’ ticket printer in a feeble attempt to stop him. Louis swats his hand away lazily, continuing to type something in the on pad.

“You need a permit for oversized vehicles to park here. Tow truck is on its way.” 

“But it’s just for a couple of hours, can’t you make an exception? Do you know White Eskimo? They’re recording here today, that’s their van, it’ll just be a little bit longer.”

“Oh, great! Then you’ll be able to give the ticket directly to them, then!” 

“But--” Niall starts, raising his hands in attempt to avoid taking the ticket Louis is now pushing on him, “Can’t we work something out? Do you want concert tickets? I could get Harry to sign something? Harry _Styles_?” 

Louis rolls his eyes at the suggestion. “That might work if I were a fourteen-year-old girl, but I think I’ll have to pass.”

“Alright, alright, I’m sorry, I just thought...” Niall begins before Louis cuts him off with the swift smoothness of someone who has given this speech a thousand times before.

“Thought what? That you could bribe a public servant? You should be grateful I don’t report you!” Louis says pointedly, his cold blue eyes staring directly at Niall now.

“Yikes, ok, I didn’t mean anything. I’ll take the ticket!” Niall groans.

“That’s what I thought!” Louis stuffs the ticket into the pocket of Niall’s cardigan. “Better luck next time!” And just like that Louis is flitting down the street again, seemingly re-energized each time he stops to write someone a ticket. 

4\. 

The next time Niall gets a ticket, he’s actually sort of impressed with the parking attendant that gave it to him. It could have been anyone, but the speed and stealth of the whole thing screams ‘Louis.’ The area seems to be his territory, and Niall’s got to admit he is quite good at his job. If you were illegally parked he’d write you a ticket so fast it would make your head spin, sidling up to cars in those tight khaki trousers of his and disappearing in a flash.

Today Niall had gotten a ticket within fifteen minutes of parking in front of the studio. He’d just needed to unload a new keyboard so he figured he’d be fine if he just put his flashers on. Isn’t there some law about that? 

Regardless, as Niall approaches his car now, he sees the familiar white square tucked under his windshield wiper reminding him that however fast he is, Louis is faster.

Niall grabs the ticket angrily and cranes his neck to look around the street. Louis must be around here somewhere. It’s a weekend afternoon, prime ticketing time, and Niall surely couldn’t be the only one to violate some meaningless parking code. 

Niall hears Louis before he sees him. Before he rounds the street corner, Niall overhears Louis spouting off his usual response to people protesting a ticket. “Look, man, rules are rules, I don’t care if you didn’t see the sign, you’re still parked illegally.”

When Niall finally sees Louis, something about this seems different. Perhaps it’s Louis’ chest puffed up in defense or how red the massively built business man towering over him has gone in the face. Perhaps it’s the tiny twinge of fear creeping into Louis’ normally sadistic smirk. Whatever it is, Niall reckons it might not be the right time to bring up his own ticket.

As Louis turns away, the livid man still shouting insults at him, Niall can see more clearly how Louis’ face has fallen. “Yeah, that’s right! Walk away! Why don’t you get a real job?” The man scoffs, “Bet you’re too stupid to do anything useful besides take money from actual productive members of society.” Louis has only taken a few steps when the man pushes him, making him trip over his own feet as he walks away.

That’s when Niall decides to step in. “Hey! Don’t be a dick!” He shouts, a bit more nervous with each step he takes towards the man as he realizes just how large he actually is.

The man turns his head to locate Niall, “What did you say to me?” Now that the man is distracted Louis takes the opportunity to get a safe distance away from him, coming closer to Niall

“I said don’t be a dick, man!” Niall ignores Louis’ attempts to get him to back off, “He’s just doing his job. Just because you’re too thick to read street signs doesn’t mean you’ve got to pick on hard working people like Louis!”

“Just let it go!” Louis pleads, pressing a hand to Niall’s chest to stop him from getting any closer.

“No way! Being some twat in a fancy suit doesn’t give him the right to push other people around!”

“Please just stop, it’s not worth it. Trust me.” 

“Better listen to your friend,” the man growls, closing the gap between himself and Niall save for Louis’ outstretched arm

“I think I can handle it,” Niall brushes Louis off but immediately regrets his decision as the business man grabs hold of Niall’s shirt, nearly lifting him off the ground.

“Oh yeah?” The man cocks an eyebrow.

“Ummm, actually, look at that!” Niall examines an imaginary watch on his wrist, managing to wriggle out the man’s grip while he’s distracted, “‘Look at the time, must be going! Catch ya later dickwad!”

And with that he and Louis are off running, the man trailing close behind. Luckily what they lack comparatively in size, they make up for in speed, and within a few moments they’ve created a safe gap between themselves and the man still barreling down the street, yelling obscenities in their general direction. Louis skids to a halt suddenly at a street corner and grabs Niall’s wrist to pull him on the back of his moped. “Hold on tight!” He shouts, barely giving Niall a moment to wrap his arms around Louis’ waist before he’s revved the engine and they’re speeding down the street.

Things have certainly taken an unexpected turn but Niall can’t say that he minds. Adrenaline pumping through his veins, the crisp early spring air as they breeze down the city streets, how Louis smells like sunscreen and cheap cologne, the firmness of his back muscles pressed against Niall’s chest, Niall gets lost in it all for a moment. So much so he’s surprised when the moped jerks to a stop at the side of the road. 

The business man now just a dot on his rear view mirror, Louis turns around and hisses, “What were you thinking?”

Neither of them get off but Niall pulls away from Louis, suddenly the closeness of having his arms wrapped around Louis seems like he’s intruding. “I guess it just looked like you could use a hand. That guy was being a jerk.”

“I can handle myself, thanks. Get by just fine on my own without the likes of you swooping in and messing around!”

“Yeah, well, I was just trying to help, no need to get all bent out of shape about it,” Niall frowns.

“Thanks, but I don’t need your help. I deal with guys like that all the time. I know how to handle it.”

“Really?” Niall asks. “How often does stuff like that happen?”

“I dunno, I suppose a few times every--”

“Week?” Niall interrupts, “Jesus, how do you put up with?”

“I was gonna say day,” Louis continues, “And the job pays the bills. Get to work on my tan as well. All considering it could be worse, I suppose.”

Niall is still gaping over the fact that this is a daily occurrence. “Well, after what I’ve just seen, I’ll never be rude to a meter maid again!”

“Excuse you,” Louis gives Niall enough of a shove to make him lose his balance and stumble from the moped over onto the curb. “It’s meter mister to you!”

Niall stands up and wipes off his trousers a bit, out of breath from the fall but laughing nonetheless. “My apologies, mister! Would you let me make it up to you with a pint? I’m sure we could both use one right about now.”

Louis mulls it over for a moment, eyeing Niall curiously. He’s always wary of fraternizing with people he’s given tickets to. Though if he’s honest with himself that doesn’t leave him with many options socially, and this guy seems nice enough. Most people who see him getting picked on wouldn’t stop to help out. In fact they’d probably join in. He may have been stupid to stand up to that businessman but his heart was certainly in the right place. “I could use a beer...” he starts, “By the way, I never got your name.”

“Niall! Niall Horan” Niall beams, extending his hand, still sweaty from the afternoon’s excitement, to Louis.

Louis shakes it reluctantly and makes no attempt to cover up how he immediately wipes off the dampness onto his pants. “Well, I’ve got to do another go around the block before my shift ends but I could meet you at the bar round the corner in fifteen minutes?”

“Perfect!” Niall grins, “Go easy on ‘em out there!”

“I won’t!” Louis chirps, starting up the engine again and sputtering away down the street. 

Twenty minutes later Niall arrives at the bar and orders a couple of beers. He waits ten minutes by himself before he starts to wonder whether Louis has decided not to come after all. Niall wouldn’t blame him. He’d probably hate people too if he had to deal with folks pestering him all day just for doing his job. 

When Louis finally walks in, over fifteen minutes late, Niall almost doesn’t recognize him. Louis has changed out of his work uniform and dressed in plain clothes he looks like any other bloke, like someone Niall would actually buy a drink for under regular circumstances. 

“Thought you might be standing me up!” Niall greets Louis with a friendly slap on the back.

“Yeah, sorry about that,” Louis fidgets with the hem of his shirt before taking a seat on the barstool next to Niall. “Had to call in a last minute tow.”

“Ah, well, no worries!” Niall slides a beer over to Louis, “Glad you could make it, though! I’m happy to get the chance to make up for interfering with your work. I realize now I probably just made things harder for you.”

Louis gives a pained smile in acknowledgement, “Just a little bit.” He sips his beer, some of the foam at the top leaving a smudge of white right above his mouth. Without thinking, Niall reaches over to wipe it off for him but his fingers collide with the back of Louis’ hand as he reaches to wipe it off himself. He didn’t notice earlier but Louis has such soft hands.

“Oh sorry!” Niall mumbles awkwardly, quickly pulling back and stuffing his hand into his pocket. 

“Don’t worry about it! And you know what now that I think about it, it was nice to have someone stand up for me for once. Even if it was just about the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen. That guy could have beaten you to a pulp!”

“Hey, I take offense to that! I’m stronger than I look!” Niall flexes his arm muscles, making a show of it until Louis swats them down.

“All right all right, put those away, Scrappy,” Louis laughs. It’s the first time Niall’s seen him really smile and he’s got to admit it’s dazzling. 

They spend a while chatting and drinking. There are a few awkward moments. Their interests don’t exactly line up and there are times when they run out of things to talk about. But there are also times where Louis makes Niall laugh harder than he has in ages, times when the sound of Niall’s laugh makes Louis feel warm and giddy and drunk even with just a couple of beers in him. 

Niall is wiping away a few tears of laughter from the corners of his eyes as Louis finishes up a story that’s even got the bartender listening closely. “Car, motorbike, camel, I could care less as long as you feed the meter!” Niall’s doubled over himself, trying to keep his balance on the barstool, when Louis jumps up from his seat, looking down at a black box attached to his belt.

“Is that a...” Niall starts

“A pager?” Louis offers, “Yeah, unfortunately my boss likes me to wear it after hours just in case.”

“In case of what?” Niall snorts, “A parking meter emergency?”

“In case someone calls in sick. Actually it’s for my benefit. My supervisor knows I need the extra cash so he always gives me first dibs when someone calls in.”

“Oh,” Niall’s smile fades, “Does that mean you’ve gotta go then?”

“Unfortunately yeah, duty calls!” Louis hops off his barstool, “But thanks for the beer! And for... well... not being a dick like everyone else.”

“Any time!” Niall stands up as well, suddenly very close to Louis, close enough to...

“Right,” Louis coughs, backing away. “Gotta run!”

“Bye then!” Niall calls, “And if you see a black Range Rover up to no good go easy on it, will you?”

“I’ll try my best!” Louis winks. And just like that he’s gone. He wishes he could stay and get know Niall better but what’s new? This job gets in the way of everything. He didn’t even get the chance to ask for his number. Maybe he was misreading things, maybe he was just so starved for positive attention he was taking Niall’s friendliness the wrong way. But in his position he’ll get his kicks were he can, even if it’s just the memory of how nice it felt with Niall pressed up against him on his moped. 

 

5\. 

For a while it seems to Niall like he might actually have Louis looking out for him. Over the next few weeks he receives no parking violations. He’d even purposely parked in a handicapped spot just to try it out. Maybe charming the meter attendant had actually worked. He is a bit disappointed, though, that he has no opportunities to talk to Louis. He’d had to run so quickly that night and Niall wishes he could have stayed for longer.

But it’s not too long before Niall approaches his car to see a that familiar sticker on the dash of his new car. “Ugh, seriously, I thought these days were over!” Niall says to no one in particular, shaking his fist to the sky. He’s startled when he feels someone tap him on the shoulder.  
“Niall? Is that you? Why are you stealing someone else’s ticket? Don’t know what to spend your money on now that I’ve stopped giving them to you?”

Niall turns around immediately to see Louis looking over at him curiously from the curb. “So you _have_ been ignoring my parking violations?” Niall beams.

“I would do no such thing!” Louis mocks offense, winking so quickly Niall’s not entirely sure he didn’t make it up. “But seriously, what are you doing?”

“Totaled my old one, this is just a rental. Guess this is my ticket, then!” Niall waves the paper before shoving it frustratedly into his wallet. 

“Well how was I supposed to know that?” Louis shrugs, “Besides it’s not my fault you parked in the emergency lane.”

“I was starving, Louis, some would argue that constitutes an emergency.”

“Oh come on,” Louis groans, “Please don’t tell me you’re going to try to talk yourself out of this one. It’s clearly marked!”

“Well,” Niall takes a few steps closer, “Maybe we could work something out?”

Louis scoffs “Like what? I’ve already--” But before he can finish Niall has pressed his lips on Louis’ taking him completely by surprise. Niall’s lips are firm and sweet and warm but so entirely against protocol as they move softly against his own.

“Wait,” Louis pushes Niall back, flushed and confused, “You don’t actually think that will work do you?” He raises an eyebrow, “What kind of man do you take me for?”

Niall chuckles, “I dunno, it seemed like a good plan.” He licks his lips, staring intently at Louis with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. “But to be honest with you I’ve wanted to do that since we got beers that one time, ticket or no ticket. “

“Really?” Louis draws back his head in surprise, “I kind of thought you just felt sorry for me”

“The only thing I’m sorry about is that I never got your number. And that you left before I could do this.” And with that Niall takes Louis’ face in his hands again, kissing him hard and fast, moving his body up against Louis’ until Louis breaks away laughing

“This is ridiculous, I can’t do this here,” Louis pants, pushing his fringe back and readjusting the growing erection in his trousers.

“Let’s do it in here then!” Niall holds up his keys to press the unlock button and with one swift motion he is dragging Louis into the backseat of this car, straddling him as he begins to bite at Louis’ neck.

“Still,” Louis looks out the window nervously as Niall continues to grind on top of him, moving his way up from Louis’ neck to bite at his ear. “You’re parked in an emergency zone.”

“Are you kidding?” Niall pulls back for a moment, “Is that really what you’re thinking about right now?”

Louis snaps his head back in Niall’s direction, “Sorry. Absolutely not. I’m cool. Continue.”

Niall laughs, “So uptight! Let’s see if we can do something about that.” 

Louis shakes his head enthusiastically as Niall slides off him and begins to palm at Louis’ cock through his trousers, stopping after a moment to unbutton them with fumbling excited fingers.

“Oh God,” Louis gasps when he finally feels the coolness of Niall’s hand against his throbbing cock. Niall grins and starts to stroke him slowly, Louis’ dick growing harder and fuller with each pump. 

Niall scoots back a little on the seat so he’s better positioned to take Louis in his mouth. He licks his lips and looks up at Louis, who’s got one hand diggings his nails into the car’s leather interior and the other hovering just above Niall’s head, poised to grab his hair. 

Niall quite likes the idea so he lifts his head just enough so that Louis able to grasp it and guide it down the length of his cock. He goes slowly and gently first, letting Niall take as much as he can, trying not to force him down too far. But after a little while he grows more desperate, pushing Niall’s head further and faster down his shaft, ‘till he can hear small choking noises coming from his mouth. 

Louis lets Niall push himself off, his hips bucking up at the absence of Niall’s warm mouth, just long enough for Niall to catch his breath and then he’s pulling Niall in for another kiss. This time he rolls on top of Niall, pinning him down so they’re spread across the entire back seat, legs tangled up in one another awkwardly, as they try to position themselves so there is enough space for the both of them to lie down. 

After a bit of shuffling, Louis gives up and settles for laying himself on top of Niall, his own bare crotch now rubbing against the fabric of Niall’s jeans. Straddling Niall’s hips as Niall throws an arm behind his head to avoid it hitting the window, Louis leans down and unbuttons the other his jeans.

“ _Fuck_ , Louis” Niall groans when Louis takes his cock in his hand, jerking him off with swift strokes until he’s panting so hard the windows start to fog up. Louis leans to kiss Niall as he continues to stroke him, his tongue sloppily exploring Niall’s mouth in between muffled groans and sighs.

Louis uses his free hand to reach up under Niall’s shirt, his cool fingers teasingly walking their way up to Niall’s chest to thumb at one his nipples. Louis twists it into a stiff peak, eliciting some incoherent hisses that sound vaguely like “Louis” and “more.”

Louis rolls his hips down onto Niall, his own cock growing harder and more sensitive still as Niall breathes hot onto his neck. The rhythm of his thrusts get faster and Louis can see Niall is getting closer with each jut forward. Louis takes Niall’s cock in hand and again starts to stroke him relentlessly.

“Come on then,” he whispers, licking a line across Niall’s jawline to his ear, and with a few more firm strokes Niall is coming in messy white streaks all over his stomach, murmuring inaudibly as he sinks further down into his seat.

When Niall has caught his breath, he sits up on his elbows, looking Louis up and down as he continues to stroke lazily at his own dick. 

“Come here,” Niall says as he lowers himself to the floorboard, “Let me finish what I started.”

Before Louis can move forward Niall’s already grabbed his ass so he can move steadily up and down his cock. In one swallow, Niall takes the whole thing, gasping for air as he pulls himself off. Niall grabs the base of Louis dick to hold it steady as he flits his tongue at the head. 

Louis throws his head back, sighing and thrusting harder into Niall’s mouth. “C’mon, Niall” he gasps, grabbing tufts of blonde hair and moving Niall’s head with more intent so he’s bobbing up and down on his dick. “‘M gonna come” he says, pulling Niall off roughly.

“Wait,” Niall moves his face even closer into Louis’ crotch, “Want you to come in my mouth.”

Louis is too far gone to question it. Niall flattens his tongue to make sure he can take all of Louis in his mouth. After sliding all the way into his mouth just a couple of times, Louis comes with a shudder, hot come filling the back of Niall’s throat. 

Niall swallows happily and looks up at Louis, sweat glistening on his forehead, “So... about that ticket?”


End file.
